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The end of multi stage in the uk


Guest ntc

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I confess to know nothing about this other than what's available from the above link but, based on what's written there, your prediction of the total demise of this type of rallying in the uk seems a bit excessive.

 

But perhaps there's more background or opinion that you could share...? (I'd be interested to know just how many entries the RAC got this year, for example)

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Of rallies I'm associated with, the Grizedale Stages have a full entry, with reserves, but others are not healthy.

 

And I know a Chief Marshal - this is not a trivial title, but one with enormous responsibilities, and a volunteer - who is giving up. Not because he is infirm or getting old, but because he is fed up with nurse-maiding spectators.

His moment was when as CM and Chief Safety Officer on a rally, he went through the stage as the routine final check, to discover spectators, in deck chairs, IN a box junction.

 

A box junction is the taped off area for cars that can't make a corner to use as run-off at an acute junction. In other words a most dangerous place to be, one that is banned to spectators and marshals alike.

When asked to move, the picnicking speccies gave him so much abuse that it tipped the balance, and this talented and enormously experienced rally organiser will now devote his energies to charity fund raising.

Excellent for the charities - bad news for rallying.

 

For Tim, and anyone else who is into cars but not rallying, UK motorsport has for generations known and acted on the fact the "Motorsport is dangerous" Even more so in rallying since the Eighties, when a combination of enormously powerful and fast Group B cars, and some very poor rally organisation (not in the UK) led to ghastly, multi-casualty accidents with spectator deaths. Since then, there have been competitor deaths, a few, but no spectators, until at last year's Jim Clark Rally, three spectators were killed. The Motor Sports Association, the UK's organising body, has legislated for better and more documented marshal training and detailed safety plans for rallies, but earlier this year, they published an open letter about the foolhardy behaviour of spectators.

When no amount of training and organisation can stop some spectators lying down on the edge of the stage, "to get a better photo", and then swearing foully at marshals, who have no powers to physically remove them, can we be surprised that rally officials choose to do something else?

 

John

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Yep afraid so :(http://www.rogeralbertclarkrally.org/RAC_2015/2015_news.htm#Roger_Albert_Clark_Rally_cancelled

litter and spectors taking self pics are also to blame.

Actually lack of entries Neil is the reason for the cancelation, but spectators leaving huge amounts of litter does not help, it makes my blood boil, the same thing happened at Wales Rally GB yesterday, there is no love left in the world, people shout about being patriotic to a flag and leave our beautiful countryside in a mess with their shite!

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Correct lack of entries cancelled rac however I assume lack of entries due to not going into Yorkshire forests I think due to the forestry commission not allowing it due to the litter left by spectators.....'

Tom

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Thanks for filling in more info.

 

This all seems to be astonishingly dumb and selfish behaviour by spectators. I can't blame the Forestry commish for not wanting huge amounts of litter in their property. Nor can I blame officials for wanting to quit because they're being abused trying to keep people safe; of course you can cancel stages if spectators won't move to safe areas (which shows how self-defeating they are being) but that is bad for competitors and organisers etc. In the case of litter, you can't even do that...

 

I'd hope that people WILL learn, over time, and rallying can flourish again so this thin-ended wedge doesn't completely kill the sport. I guess we'll see.

 

We don't have the same problems over here - mostly because there are so few spectators ;-)

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Thanks for filling in more info.

 

This all seems to be astonishingly dumb and selfish behaviour by spectators. I can't blame the Forestry commish for not wanting huge amounts of litter in their property. Nor can I blame officials for wanting to quit because they're being abused trying to keep people safe; of course you can cancel stages if spectators won't move to safe areas (which shows how self-defeating they are being) but that is bad for competitors and organisers etc. In the case of litter, you can't even do that...

 

I'd hope that people WILL learn, over time, and rallying can flourish again so this thin-ended wedge doesn't completely kill the sport. I guess we'll see.

 

We don't have the same problems over here - mostly because there are so few spectators ;-)

They won't learn Tim, we blew our engine on the last stage of the 2010 Cambrian Rally in Clocaenog and parked up down a firebreak by a corner where spectators were watching, we had to wait for our service crew to bring the trailer, we were there long after the speccies had gone and the mess was disgusting, my codriver and I and a scrutineer who had been watching tried to pick up the mess, the job was beyond us, I was more upset by that than the blown engine!! the engine builder rebuilt it free of charge ( brand new engine)

John Worthing

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Tim

A different generation of spectators and they are killing the sport. :(

Sadly so true Neil!

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John

Saturday night 10.30 pm peeing it down a little b&b opposite me letting the dog out I hear a sound you know what I mean ;) I had go and have a chat , one rally Manta and a good un :) they had a long drive and up she fired at 6am to do Cadwell :) took me back years.

Ps John

The Daughter was also there Conwy and had the same feeling after watching the stages.

Edited by ntc
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Special stage rallying is very much a curates egg, some events are oversubscribed in hours, others get cancelled due to lack of entries. There have been a number of rule changes that have come in this year and some more for next year that will lead a few more organisers, and competitors to give up.

 

Some areas have seen their forestry allocation for events severely reduced or disappear completely, motorsport is not seen as an eco friendly activity.

 

There is also a major lack of new, or should I say younger competitors, marshals and organisers coming into the sport. The potential for closed road events in the UK has been seen as future of UK rallying but as yet this hasn't really happened.

 

I've not been stage rallying for years now, better value motorsport can be had these days in my view. Classic rallying for more standard cars is booming on the whole, modern rallying in a front wheel drive shopping trolley or a classic event in a Tr7 V8 at a fraction of the cost er let me think about that for about 2 seconds :unsure:

 

 

Wingo.

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  • 4 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...

Sorry, I was ahead of myself. Pirelli is weekend 30th/1st.

I would have gone to Silverstone on the Sunday, but the drives to and from Keilder and then down to Silverstone was too much for 24 hours.

Must be getting old.

 

Let you know how the Pirelli was.

John

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